Pakistan bat first in opposition to Nepal on ‘dry and glossy’ Multan pitch

Toss Pakistan selected to bat vs Nepal

Babar Azam gained the toss within the opening match of the 2023 Asia Cup and opted to bat first on what he referred to as a “dry and shiny” Multan pitch that seemed stuffed with runs.

Nepal are making their Asia Cup debut and their captain Rohit Paudel mentioned it was “a big achievement” for the crew. They reached right here by profitable the ten-team ACC Premier Cup in April-May, clinching the title forward of groups comparable to UAE and Hong Kong, who’ve each performed within the Asia Cup earlier than.

This can also be the primary time Nepal are dealing with Pakistan in any format in worldwide cricket.

Pakistan had introduced their XI on Tuesday itself – Babar mentioned they had been assured and had no hesitation in doing so. They picked three quick bowlers – Shaheen Shah Afridi, Naseem Shah and Haris Rauf – and two spin-bowling allrounders – Shadab Khan and Mohammad Nawaz – with Agha Salman additionally able to chipping in together with his offspin.

Pakistan have not performed a lot 50-over cricket within the newest cycle however they lately whitewashed Afghanistan in a three-match ODI sequence in Sri Lanka.

Pakistan: 1 Fakhar Zaman, 2 Imam-ul-Haq, 3 Babar Azam (capt), 4 Mohammad Rizwan (wk), 5 Agha Salman, 6 Iftikhar Ahmed, 7 Shadab Khan, 8 Mohammad Nawaz, 9 Shaheen Shah Afridi, 10 Naseem Shah, 11 Haris Rauf

Nepal: 1 Kushal Bhurtel, 2 Aasif Sheikh (wk), 3 Rohit Paudel (capt), 4 Aarif Sheikh, 5 Kushal Malla, 6 Dipendra Singh Airee, 7 Gulsan Jha, 8 Sompal Kami, 9 Karan KC, 10 Sandeep Lamichhane, 11 Lalit Rajbanshi